Why is Bud Black arguing this?

[byco42]

1. It's clearly a balk.
2. Arguing balks is an ejectable offense.
3. The Padres' announcers are wrong and or uninformed.

http://mlb.mlb.com/video/play.jsp?c...c_id=mlb&partnerId=aw-7582685304965524961-996

 

[Mitchrapp]

It's always been hard for me to know when a balk occurs, I was an umpire at one time even, but even I could tell that was a balk. The announcers are just being homers, not different than most.

 

[Thumb]

The Balk was that he turned his head towards home plate while in the delivery then turned back and threw to first.

He tried to deke the runner into thinking he was throwing a pitch.

Clearly a Balk.

 

[byco42]

The Balk was that he turned his head towards home plate while in the delivery then turned back and threw to first.

He tried to deke the runner into thinking he was throwing a pitch.

Clearly a Balk.

No. That's not the reason. You can look at Alpha Centauri and deliver the baseball to home plate or any occupied base that you step toward.

The balk occurred when Richard threw to first after his right foot crossed the plane of the rubber. When the right foot crosses that plane, a pitcher has to deliver the ball to home plate.

 

[Mitchrapp]

Correct, its all about the foot.

 

[byco42]

Correct, its all about the foot.

Where it crosses, or where it lands. It has to be inside that imaginary 45-degree angle with the pitchers rubber as one of the line segments. Remember when they chalked that line on the mound in spring training about 25 years ago?